A study published in Cell Microbe and Host reported that gut bacteria modulate systemic asparagine availability and thereby alter tumor progression and anti‑tumor immunity. Researchers showed Bacteroides ovatus carrying the bo‑ansB gene depletes intestinal asparagine, reducing its delivery to tumors and, in some contexts, accelerating cancer growth; deletion of bo‑ansB allowed dietary asparagine to boost CD8+ T‑cell anti‑tumor responses in mice. The work, led in part by immunology teams at Weill Cornell, links diet, microbiota enzymology and immune cell metabolism—suggesting microbiome or dietary interventions could shift therapeutic responses by changing key amino‑acid pools.